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Finally, after the last minute push for nominations, combined with all the registrations being added, the 2018 Ammann Awards voting Ballot is now here. Between now and 7th January, you have a chance to vote for your favorite bridges in each of the categories below. As in the past, there is no limit in the number of votes you can submit per category. Yet a couple minor items to keep in mind:

In the categories of Best Example of a Restored Historic Bridge, Mystery Bridge and Best Bridge Photo, only the photos with little information is available. This way, voters can have a look at the photos more carefully before voting. Especially in the Restored Historic Bridge, the voter should have a closer look at what was done with each bridge and decide what was done with it. All the information will be revealed when the winners are announced in January.

Before you vote, you can look at the Information for each of the candidates and click on the links for more Details. For all except the category Best Bridge Photo, you can find the Information by clicking onto this link here.

In case of questions on the voting process or any issues that come about, please contact Jason Smith at the Chronicles at the following address: flensburg.bridgehunter.av@googlemail.com. The polls will Close on 7th January at 11:59pm Chicago time, which means 6:59am Berlin time on 8th January.

Good luck and may the voting begin! 😀 We have a bumper crop this time around!

Rainbow Arch Bridge next to American Falls. Photo taken while on boat tour. All photos and filming were taken by the author in August 2018

Hundreds of tour books, written in about three dozen languages have touted Niagara Falls as one of the 1000 places one has to see once in his lifetime. From the author’s point of view, even though the Falls area is one of the largest tourist traps in North America, maybe even the world, with thousands of souvenirs, restaurants and other main attractions, if one wants to see just the falls themselves, there are five ways to do it: 1. At level along the streets and boardwalks, 2. At night with the fireworks display, 3. Via boat tour which takes the person to the two falls, up close and personal, and 4. Via Skylon Tower on the Ontario side of the falls. And while a person can get a wonderful treat viewing the two falls- American and Horseshoe (the latter is the bigger one)- from Skylon, one can also get a treat viewing the Falls‘ bridges, which is the fifth way.

While one can get a picturesque view of the Rainbow Bridge while doing the boat tour, one can photograph all but four of the 20+ bridges from Skylon Tower, including the I-190 Bridge, which is 25 kilometers (12 miles) away and spans the Niagara River. However, to get to all of them, one needs the bike or the car. In some cases, they are reachable by foot. We did all five parts of the tour and got the bridges in the process. This tour guide will show you the bridges one really needs to see while enjoying the view of the Falls. It will feature a brief summary with a couple pics, plus a map showing where the bridges are located. More bridges can be found in the Chronicles‘ facebook and Instagram pages. In the end, the author can make some recommendations as to where a person can find these bridges with a Tour Guide hint to follow at the end of this tour guide.

We must keep in mind that the tour is focused solely on the Falls area. There are countless bridges along the Welland Canal area, but you can view them via Nathan Holth’s historicbridges.org website, which is here.

So without further ado, let’s have a look at the bridges, starting with the one closest to Lake Ontario going towards Erie.

Built: 1962 by the Bethlehem Steel Company in Bethlehem, PA; designed by Waddel and Hadesty

Niagara Falls has four steel deck arches spanning the mighty river between Lakes Ontario and Erie and two of these rainbow deck arches, the bridge type characterized by the unhinged, ribbed arch span that supports the roadway going over it. The Lewiston-Queenston Bridge, which was built in 1962, is the youngest of the bridges in the region. With a total length of 1600 feet (479 meters) and the main span of 1000 feet (305 meters), the Lewiston-Kingston Bridge is the longest of the bridges in the region. It serves as the only US-Canadian crossing, where a person can head west into Canada. While both sides have border crossings and tax-free shops along the freeways, the best vantage point for this crossing is on the Ontario side, where there is parking along the street on the river side, just as the person is entering the freeway. This was where I got most of my photos. The bridge replaced an iron suspension bridge, which was located downstream and featured Town Lattice portals. More details can be found here. About 300 meters south of the bridge is the Floral Clock and Park, where one can get some beautiful shots in the spring and summer time, while having a picnic at the same time. However beware, there are costs for parking there, so have some cash with.

Even though the Aero Car is not a bridge per se, this overhead cable railway is considered a crossing, let alone a tourist attraction that one must see if one wants to visit the Whirlpool Rapids in person. The rapids is rather difficult to see from the street due to the high vegetation and because of the risk of drowning, any private boat traffic along the Niagara River and at the Falls themselves is prohibited by law. The exception is with the tour boats travelling up to the Falls. Instead of risking a massive fine of $10,000 or possible death by capsizing and drowning, one can pay $35-40 to ride the Aero Car for up to 15 minutes, getting pictures of the Rapids directly from below and perhaps the two railroad bridges pending on the weather. One can also see the Whirlpool Rapids State Park in the US side and the Robert Moses Power Station on the Canadian side. The concept was developed by Leonardo Torres Quevedo, who later founded the Niagara Spanish Aero Car Company Limited, which owns the 35-person cable car that goes 700 feet across the river.

Bridge type: Steel Deck Truss with Pratt Truss features; double-decking with railway on top and roadway at the bottom.

Built: 1899 by Pennsylvania Steel Company; designed by Leffert Buck of Canton, New York

The Whirlpool Rapids Highway Bridge one of two bridges located at the rapids and the second of three international crossings in the Niagara Falls region. Like with the Kingston, its predecessor was a suspension bridge that had been built 30+ years before. The Highway Bridge is the oldest of the bridges in the region, even though the railroad crossing next door to the south appears older but was built 30 years later. It is one of several bridges of its kind that was designed by Leffert L. Buck, who was credited for designing and building all but one bridge over the Niagara River, but was held accountable post humously for the collapse of the Honeymoon Bridge, which had been built in 1897 but collapsed in 1938. The Rainbow Bridge now occupies this spot. Buck was also credited for bridge building in the New York City area, including the Williamsburg Bridge over the East River, which was built in 1903. The bridge is measured at 790 feet (241 meters) in total, with the arch span being 550 feet (167 meters). It features a double-decker design, where the roadway is at the bottom and train traffic runs on top. Passenger trains also use this bridge and the Amtrak Railway Station is on the American side. Border controls are also found there, yet access to the bridge is rather restricted. While one can get some photos of the bridge from the Ontario side by foot, it is difficult to find a place to park if traveling by car or bike, as access is not possible unless on private property. Only motorized vehicles are allowed to cross the bridge, thus making it impossible to cross on foot unless risking being arrested. The Highway Bridge has been maintained really well, with a new paint job and other inspections and the like to keep the structure functionally sound, which can cause confusion because it appears younger than its railroad structure next door. Yet there is a reason behind that, as you will see in the next bridge profile.

Built: 1925 by American Bridge Company of New York; designed by Leffert Buck and Olaf Hoff

The Whirlpool Rapids Railroad Bridge is similar to its neighbor to the north and has a history of its own. Its predecessor was a cantilever deck truss bridge with Whipple and Howe features and was one of the first of its kind in North America, having been built in 1883. Its current structure was based on a design created by Buck. However it was shelved after he died unexpectedly of apolexy in 1909. The design was later taken out and modified by Olaf Hoff (and associates William Perry Taylor and J.L. Delming), who contracted with American Bridge to build the structure alonside the cantilever span, which was later removed. The structure appears older than its age, but this has to do with the fact that the crossing has been abandoned since 2001. According to Nathan Holth, an agreement was made between Canadian Pacific Railroad and the City of Niagara Falls (Ontario) where the railroad and bridge would be abandoned as it ran through the tourist district and it was considered a safety concern and a nuisance. The railroad would keep the bridge but eventually remove it completely. As of the visit in 2018, the railroad bridge is still intact and there were no cranes or other vehicles on site that would indicate that there would be any removal activity. The bridge is barracaded with barbed wire to ensure no one climbs onto the bridge to cross it. One can still get some pics- even better, when standing between the two bridges. The bridge can also be seen from Skylon if one looks at it more closely. Yet beware that the days of the railroad bridge may be numbered and it could be removed sooner than later, unless a preservation party is willing to step in and claim responsibility for repurposing it for bikes and pedestrians. Until that happens, it is recommended to visit the structure while it is still standing.

The Whirlpool Rapids Bridges was built at the site where John Roebling’s first wire suspension bridge had been built. It was constructed in 1855 and featured a double-decking with the railroad going over the top; horse and buggy the bottom deck. It was dismantled after the Highway Bridge was completed in 1897, but not before having undergone an extensive rehabilitation 11 years before.

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Rainbow Arch Bridge

Location: Niagara River at Roberts Street next to American Falls

Bridge Type: Steel deck arch with closed spandrel arch approaches

Built: 1941 replacing the Honeymoon Bridge

The Rainbow Arch Bridge is the most popular of the bridges in the Niagara Falls Region. It is one where attention is given by the tens of thousands of passers-by and tourists daily, whether it is on even level from the walkway, from the bottom while on a boat tour to the American and Horseshoe Falls, or from high up via Skylon Tower. The bridge is the centerpiece attraction which complements the two falls, day and night. The bridge is the oldest of the rainbow deck arches, but at 1444 feet (440 meters) and a main span of 950 feet (289 meters), it is the shorter of the two bridge spans of its kind. However, when viewing the bridge from a historical perspective, the bridge is the fourth one built at its present location. The first structure was a suspension bridge known as teh Falls View Bridge. It was built in 1867 at the site where the American Platform is located, but despite extensive rehabilitation in 1888 that featured the widening of the bridge deck, the suspension bridge, which had been built by Samuel Keefer, was blown down by a windstorm on January 9th, 1889. It was later rebuilt as a second suspension bridge, needing only 38 days until it was completed and reopened on May 7th, 1889. It didn’t last long, for another wind storm in January 1890 caused significant damage to the structure. Although it survived intact, workers came up with a new plan to replace the suspension bridge, which was the Honeymoon Bridge. Designed by Buck, Pencoyd Bridge and Construction built the superstructure in 1897 and featured a steel deck arch with grided pandrels, a Warren ribbed-arch main span and one bowstring deck arch approach span per side. The bridge remained in service until one tragic day on January 27th, 1938. There, an ice jam, combined with high winds, brought the structure down completely. Two people who were on the bridge at that time, barely escaped death by running across to the New York side. The collapse of the bridge was photographed by Frank O. Seed, which gained popularity. Because it was too dangerous to get out onto the river to remove the structure because of the high waves, wind and the high cliffs, the remnants of the Honeymoon Bridge remained on the icy river until April 13th of the same year, when it was moved down river by up to a mile and later sank to the bottom. None of the bridge has ever been recovered since then. Three years later, Waddel and Hardesty designed its replacement and Bethlehem Steel constructed the current bridge which has been in service since, carrying traffic between New York and Ontario. The bridge provides some great views and should a book ever be written about the bridges in the Niagara Falls region, it would definitely reach the front cover because of its popularity that coincides with that of the two falls themselves. The bridge is found everywhere on postcards and booklets on the Falls, but eventually, a book on the bridges will need to be considered as well.

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William Rankine Power Generating Station Bridge

Location: Niagara Falls Outlet at the Power Generating Station on Niagara Parkway.

Type: Closed Spandrel Stone Arch Bridge (5-span)

Built: 1905

Walking past the Horseshoe Falls, we have this bridge, a five-span stone arch bridge that is located next to the city’s power station. Both were built at the same time, and both were built with the purpose of directing part of the flow from the Niagara River to the power station, where it can produce energy via hydro-electric power. It is unknown who the bridge builder was, however, it is one of four bridges a person can find in the area, whose bridge type and aesthetics are the same. Even a smaller crossing along the sidewalk next to the top of Horseshoe Falls resemble a similar engineering artwork.

Luna Island Bridge

Location: Segment of Niagara Falls at American Falls between Luna Island and Tesla Monument

Bridge Type: Stone arch bridge (one span)

Built: between 1900 and 1905

The Luna Island Bridge is the shortest of the stone arch bridges in Niagara Falls, with a length of no more than 50 feet. It is the closest bridge to American Falls, which provides tourists with an up-close view of American Falls from the American shoreline. It does provide its lone access from Luna Island to the Niagara platform, which was built in 1961 and gives a person a view of both the American and the Horseshoe Falls from the American side. On the Canadian side, the bridge is sometimes difficult to photograph from the walkway along the Falls in the warmer seasons due to vegetation, but one can get a good shot from Skylon if zoomed in as far as the camera can allow for it.

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Goat Island Bridges

Location: Niagara Falls on Goat Island Drive

Bridge Type: Stone Arch Bridge (each three spans)

Built: 1905

Goat Island Bridge features a thoroughfare crossing that connects Goat Island and the city of Niagara Falls on the New York side, with an intermission going through Green Island. Each section has three spans but according to data, the total length of the entire structure with the island in between is between 180 and 200 feet. Originally, the bridge provided vehicular access, but as of present, access has been reduced to pedestrian and cyclar traffic. The structure can be seen from the Canadian side but also from the Skylon Tower. Yet, measures are being sought to replace both spans due to age and structural deterioration. But the procedure will not be easy. The American Falls will need to be shut down beforehand and all the water flow will need to be diverted through Horseshoe Falls. It would be a first since 1969, should both city governments as well as the Canadian government approve the measure. This measure would be use to rehabilitate the American Falls to reduce erosion, while at the same time, replace the Goat Island Bridges. If and when this will all happen remains open.

Grand Island Viaduct

Location: Niagara River at I-190 between Sandy Beach and Niagara Falls, New York

Bridge Type: Cantilever deck truss with Warren/Wichert truss features

Built: 1935; additional replica built in 1963

The Grand Island Viaduct is the easternmost bridge in the Niagara Falls area, as the bridge carries Interstate I-190 that connects Niagara Falls with Buffalo. The interstate bypasses the city before crossing the Niagara River the second time at Kingston and entering Canada. While the bridge is not visible on the ground, it can be seen clearly from Skylon Tower, if one has a camera that can zoom as far as what is shown in the picture.

Bird’s eye view of both American and Horseshoe Falls taken from Skylon Tower

There is a map where you can have a look at the location of the bridges and the places where you can get your best shots of the structures. From the author’s point of view, there are four places where you can get the best shots of the Falls, all of which from the Canadian side which you will be greeted by a crowd of thousands who will have the same idea. But still, with patience, you can get the best shots: on even level along the walkway from the Power Station to the Rainbow Arch, from Skylon Tower, while on a boat tour to Horseshoe Falls and lastly, by crossing the city’s finest bridges, as mentioned here. And while Niagara Falls is a “once-in-a-lifetime” event which one should really see, as a pontist, the bridges in the area are just as important, not only because of its location, but also because of their history. Which is why it would not be a surprise if a book on this topic will be on the shelves within five years after this tour guide is posted. 😉

The Gallery presented here is a fraction of what you can find on the Chronicles’ Facebook page. Click here and you will be directed to the Album, where you can enjoy not only the photos but comment on some of the bridges, including those not mentioned here. A link to some more interesting facts about the bridges in the area can be found here. 🙂

Travelling along the Autobahn 115 heading into Berlin, one will be greeted with a lot of surprises in a form of relicts from the Cold War Days. Even abandoned buildings, lighting and pieces of the Berlin Wall have managed to remain in place after almost 30 years since the Fall of the Wall, which created the domino effect for the rest of eastern Europe and resulted in a reunified Germany. Some examples of such relicts include those at Checkpoint Bravo, located at the former border splitting Berlin into two at Dreilinden-Drewitz.

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From 1969 until 1991, this was the former transit point for all cars entering West Berlin from the rest of East Germany. Patrollmen inspected the vehicles for dangerous goods- those on the East side for those wishing to smuggle themselves to the West at any cost. Restaurants, gas and service station, customs office and holding stations, all of which were the works of the architect mastermind Rainer Rümmler, flanked the Autobahn, which was christened the AVUS Transit during those days. Relicts from the past still exist today but are partially occupied by administrative offices serving Berlin and the rest of Europe. One can witness the eery feeling of emptiness combined with nostalgia when walking across the former complex that had greeted thousands passing through daily.

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Yet, when looking 2 kilometers to the west, one will see relicts of another former crossing and bits and pieces of the older Autobahn, including a bridge spanning the Teltow Canal. This one has an even more adventuresome history which will be discussed in this tour guide on the bridges at Checkpoint Bravo. To give you an idea what we are looking at, let’s have a look at a pair of maps to help you:

To get there, there are several ways. By car, one can park at the former Checkpoint Bravo site or at some of the parking areas in the Düppel Forest, including the Campground Camping Freude Berlin, located on the south end of Teltow Canal. The nearest lightrail (S-bahn) and rail stop is Griebnitzsee, yet it is recommended to use the bike to get to the site because the former site is 2 kilometers to the east- that is unless you’re training for the Berlin Marathon, then you can afford the trek into the wild. 😉

I took the rental bike during my stay in Berlin and detouring past the US Consulate in Charlottenburg, I took the chance by biking down there to see the sites that belonged to one of the most important sites in post-war German history; second behind Checkpoint Charlie in the city center. After spending a couple hours there, one can conclude that Checkpoint Bravo and its sites are definitely worth a field trip for any history class in school. We’ll have a look at the reasons why beginning with……..

….this bridge.

AVUS Bridge at Teltow Canal

This bridge is the piecemeal of the former East-West Berlin crossing from the southwest. The deckplate girder crossing is about 150 meters long and dates back to 1940. It was part of the first Autobahn that was built in Germany, dating back to 1922. From Funkturm in the city center to Grunewald, the motorway, known as AVUS, was solely used for car racing and for testing automobiles until the time of the Third Reich (1933-45) when they decided to use it for transporting people and goods while at the same time, extend the route to the south. The first segment connected the three-leaf interchange Nuhetal (with A-10 Berlin Ring) with the four-leaf clover interchange Zehlendorf in 1940. The second extended to the southern end of the race track and was completed in 1941. Counting the interruptions because of the last few months of the Second World War and the march on Berlin in 1945, the northern half of AVUS was used for autoracing until 1998. The AVUS Bridge at Teltow Canal, a.k.a. the Dreilinden Crossing was considered throughfare until after World War II, when Berlin was divided into West and East. Prior to Germany’s defeat, the Nazi soldiers had blown up the crossing to slow down the advancing troops. From 1948 onwards, the Dreilinden Crossing was considered a border crossing and would continue to function as that until 1969, when the East German government decided to shut down the border crossing and as a reaction, the West German government constructed Checkpoint Bravo. Prior to its closure, when people tried crossing between West and East, they were greeted by a restaurant, campground, car parking area and crossguards with patrol house. On the west end, there were flag posts where the flags of West Germany, the Allied Countries and Berlin once waved proudly. The flag post, road signs leading to West Berlin, a few street lamps and the bridge itself are still there today. The restaurant and campground have long since closed and are privately owned. The bridge used to be blocked off during the Cold War with the wall going right across the structure. That was subsequentially removed after the Fall of the Wall. Today, one can use the bridge to cross Teltow Canal and see some of the sites of what used to be the Dreilinden border crossing, but will not be able to see the restaurant and campground. The structure has been considered a historic landmark because of its association with the Cold War and the history of the AVUS. Ironically, the AVUS is the second oldest motorway in the world; the first one was built in 1921 in Italy (Milan-Laghi Autostrada) and was used exclusively as the motorway we know of today. AVUS was solely used as a testing ground and racetrack until 1935.

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AVUS/Stammbahn Underpass

As many as four bridges used to span the original stretch of the AVUS from the time it was built in 1940 until the time the autobahn was relocated and the Dreilinden border crossing closed in 1969. This bridge is all that is left today, as it still spans what is left of the route. The bridge consisted of two railroad crossings, although given the unusual width of the brick piers, it might have for one time carried a street or multiple rail lines. However, records show that this bridge was a railroad crossing that carried the original Berlin-Potsdam-Magdeburg Railroad (BPM). The line was created in 1845-47 and used to run through Zehlendorf and Düppel. The rail line also included an S-bahn line that ran parallel between the BPM Route and the AVUS. The line survived for almost 120 years until two events sealed the fate of the Zehlendorf-Griebnitzsee portion of the BPM. The first was the construction of the Berlin Außerring in 1956, which rerouted all train service through Berlin-Wannsee instead of Düppel, Machnow and Stolperweg, all of which ran parallel and across the East-West German border. The second was the construction of the Berlin Wall and the strikes that followed. With the two developments, the line between Griebnitzsee and Düppel was cut off, and the original line was shut down by 1980. Relicts of the line still exist today including this bridge, whose remaining span consists of a single-track steel plate girder span, with an estimated length of 100 meters across the former AVUS. The other spans were removed and reused on other rail lines. Since 2000, there have been talks of revitalizing the original line yet the earliest they will be able to start rebuilding and reopening the line is 2030. While walking past the bridge, one will be greeted by grafiti that covered virtually the entire bridge and piers. 200 meters away of the bridge is a memorial for one of the victims who tried escaping to the western half but was shot on site by East German border guards.

On 15 June, 1965, businessman Hermann Döbler and his partner Elke Märtens were on a boating trip from Wannsee to Griebnitzsee when they tried to escape to West Berlin via Teltow Canal. The canal was heavily guarded by patrolmen on the East German side to prevent people from escaping. Still the two took the risk and tried to cross, only to stop 100 meters short of the border and turn around. As Döbler was turning around, two patrolmen opened fire on the boat, hitting him four times in the knee, torso and head and killing him instantly. Elke suffered a grazed bullet in the head but survived with permanent injuries. Döbler had tried to help others escape and even wanted to escape to the west after he was separated from his family because of the Wall. His family was already in the western half of Germany when the Wall was built. The person who shot him was later arrested in 1993 and convicted of murder. He was sentenced to six years in prison.

Friedhofsbahnbrücke

The Friedhofsbahnbrücke is one of a few well-known relicts left of the train line that connected Berlin-Wannsee and Stahndorf. It was one of two light rail crossings over the border between West and East Berlin during the Cold War. Yet the bridge and the line go back a century. The Baltimore through truss bridge with riveted connections and closed heel bracings was built in conjunction with the creation of the line in 1913-14. While the line survived the first World War, it sustained considerable damage during the second World War, with the light rail stations, much of the 4.2 kilometer track and this bridge itself being destroyed before the end of the war. Attempts to rebuild the line were difficult for the bridge and the tracks were rebuilt, but tensions between the West (USA, France and Britain) and the Soviet Union resulted in splitting Berlin into West and East. Despite attempts to create a border crossing at Wannsee, connecting Stahndorf, the erection of the Berlin Wall in 1961 sealed the fate of the line, for the lone crossings left were at Drewitz (by car) and Wannsee (by train and light rail). During the 1970s and 80s, both governments dismantled the tracks, bridges and Train stations for they were rendered useless, plus for the western half, they wanted to renaturalize the area. Attempts to reactivate the line via petitions by the church organizations and locals during the 1990s fell on deaf ears because of the lack of financial feasibility of the line. Today, only small sections of the line on the former western end exist, together with a couple bridges, including this one.

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Sadly though, the days of the Friedhofsbrücke are numbered. In 2013, the German Railways (Die Bahn) announced the removal of the bridge for safety reasons, citing the fact that because of its decades-long abandonment, combined with weather extremities and boat traffic passing underneath, the bridge has rusted and corroded to a point where rehabilitation was no longer an option. At the same time, the bridge and the property surrounding it was put up for sale in hopes to unload its liability. Up until now, there is no word as to whether the sale was carried out. During my visit in 2018, the bridge was still standing but the entire decking has been removed, leaving the 200-meter structure all but a superstructural skeleton. Combined with the extreme rust and corrosion on the structure, chances are likely that the bridge will be gone before 2020 latest. And with that, the remains of the Friedhofsbahn that had once benefitted the growing population of Stahndorf. The locals today still don’t understand the reasons for the line’s death nor the logic of the Bahn. Yet with German logic, there are some things that we don’t understand.

Autobahn 115 Bridge

Only 300 meters east of the Friedhofbahnbrücke, one will find the A115 Bridge. Consisting of a single-span tied arch span with three arches, built in a 40° skew, this 150 meter long span is located 250 meters south of the exit Dreilinden and Stolperstrasse. The structure was built in 1995, replacing a steel girder span that was built at the same time as the realigned Autobahn, which was built between 1967 and 1969. Because of the increase in traffic volume, especially after the Fall of the Wall in 1989, the steel structure was no longer able to handle the load and was therefore replaced. The arch bridge was built to the east of the old structure before it was slid into place at the expense of 60s structure. The bridge carries six lanes of traffic and still accommodates large sums of traffic without any problems to this day. And it is a good thing too, for Berlin has been growing by about 3% daily, especially in the outer suburbs. When entering Berlin from the south, one should exit at Dreilinden/ Stolperstrasse and turn left. There, one will find a museum with the name Checkpoint Bravo at the site of the former East German border crossing at Dreilinden and watchman’s tower. The crossing was built in 1969 when the AVUS was relocated and was preserved in 1998 and converted into a museum, where one will see a gallery, depicting the history of Checkpoints Bravo and Dreilinden and the way of life prior to 1989. One can learn more about this historic site by clicking here.

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Königsweg Friedhofsbahn Overpass

The next bridge is very hidden- so hidden that in order to get to the structure, one has to get down and dirty and fight through the vegetation and rock climb his way down to get to the structure. And even then, it is recommended to do that in the winter time, when all the leaves are off the trees, and one can see the former S-bahn and bridge up close. The bridge is located parallel to the old AVUS, with the trail it carries running parallel to the highway before merging with the current Autobahn A 115 in the direction of Berlin. In the opposite direction, one will find it on the right-hand side of the former AVUS (about 100 meters away) before the Autobahn curves left in the direction of the former checkpoint at Dreilinden. The structure is a single span, closed spandrel, concrete arch Bridge spanning the former track of the Friedhofsbahn with a span of approximately 40 meters. With only one track, one span is logical, otherwise with two or more, one would have either added another arch span or, as practiced with most railway spans in Berlin, a through truss span. Even though we don’t know wo built the bridge, the arch span dates back to the time of the building of the S-bahn and has survived years of war, abandonment and weather extremities for over a century without a scratch. It carries Königsweg, a minimum maintenance road used mostly as a bike trail and pedestrian path connecting Griebnitzsee and Checkpoint Bravo. Sadly though, the bridge has seen better days for there is a restricted weight limit of 16 tons. Furthermore, the lane has been reduced to one lane to ensure that one vehicle can cross at a time. It is unknown how long the bridge will be in service before something happens to it. Even though track remains of the Friedhofsbahn can be seen at the bridge, chances are very likely that the span will be removed and the crossing filled in for the Bahn has shown no interest in reactivating the line, despite pleas from communities affected to have the Bahn reconsider.

Approximately 1.5 Kilometers to the east of the arch bridge is the newest of the crossings at the former Checkpoint Bravo and Dreilinden sites. Built in 1998, this bridge is located only 70 meters south of the “Hausbrücke” at Bravo and Features a rare form of a suspension bridge- a steel plate girder bridge that is supported only by the towers and no cables. An additional pier in the middle of the Autobahn is also included to provide stability for the structure, whose length is 61.2 meters and height is 1.65 meters. The architect for the bridge was Benedict Tonon, who had left his mark in Berlin with three other bridges: Marschallbrücke, Anhalter Steg and Hiroshimasteg. Krupp Steel (part of Thyssen Krupp) built the superstructure. While the bridge is obstructed by the Hausbrücke on the north end (unless one is inside that Bridge), one’s best shot for this bridge is on the south end or on the structure itself. The Königsweg was needed for the previous structure, built in 1940, was too short for the city’s plan to widen the A-115 from Potsdamer Chausee and areas to the south in Babelsberg and Potsdam. The 1940 structure, a concrete girder span, used to serve traffic to the residential areas nearby, which were popular during the days of the Cold War. After the Fall of the Wall and German Reunification, many West German residents abandoned the housing areas for newer and better properties in the former East, leaving some parts of the area to renaturalization. Today’s bridge, together with the next one on the tour guide, serves six lanes of A-115 at Bravo, but is mostly used for cyclists and hikers, while only a handful of cars pass through here.

Bridgehouse at Checkpoint Bravo

Apart from the Border Crossing Bridge over the Teltow Canal at Dreilinden, the Bridgehouse at Bravo is the second of the two masterpieces that depict the history of the East-West Berlin crossing at Checkpoint Bravo in full Detail. Like at the Dreilinden crossing, the Housebridge is part of the border Control complex that was built from 1968 to 1972 and was primarily a military base for American troops for over 20 years. It is located only 70 meters south of the Königsweg Crossing, approximately half a Kilometer south of the Potsdamer Chausee interchange, the first Exit when travelling through what was the former West Berlin. During the Cold War, travellers entering East Germany from West Berlin were greeted at Checkpoint Bravo, where their cars were thoroughly inspected to ensure there were no harmful materials that could cause unrest between East and West. Lines of cars along the AVUS were the norm and many had to wait either in waiting rooms at the customs Office or the holding rooms as well as at restaurants located on both sides of the AVUS. Westerners were allowed to enter and leave East Germany, whereas the East Germans were banned from entering West Berlin, as it was part of West Germany. There were many attempts to escape to the West from 1961, when the Berlin Wall was erected, until 9 November, 1989 when the Wall fell and the gates were opened to those who want to see it. Yet during that time, Checkpoint Bravo was also involved in (nearly) successful attempts of smuggling East Germans into West Berlin (and with that, the West).

One needs to remember that along the AVUS, there were two border crossings from 1969 to the Fall of the Wall: the East German border crossing at Checkpoint Bravo, located at the site of A-115 Bridge over the Teltow Canal and the West German border crossing at Checkpoint Bravo, which is this one. One needs to pass through both to cross. Both sites are considered historic monuments yet the Housebridge and the West Berlin side of Checkpoint Charlie was auctioned off, together with the restaurant in 2010. The Bridge, which was designed by Rainer Rümmler und Hans Joachim Schröder, together with the rest of the complex, is still standing and serves as a greetings and entry point to Berlin. The complex is still used for film scenes, yet there are no plans for converting at least part of the complex- bridge included- to a museum just like at the one at the East Berlin part of Bravo at Stolperstrasse. Yet anything is possible and it is doubtful that the whole complex- still preserved in ist original pre-1989 form- will disappear anytime soon, for Checkpoint Bravo is still a key part of the history of Berlin, Germany, Europe and the Cold War period, where the US and Soviets faced off for four decades until 1989.

Fazit:

After spending a couple hours by bike and by foot, I found a lot of interesting facts that made this area around Checkpoint Charlie a unique place to visit. While many people prefer a tour guide with simply fancy historic bridges with some historical facts and all, sometimes bridges play a role in the history of the region and possibly the country. The bridges at and around Checkpoint Bravo symbolized the need to connect East and West Germanys as well as Berlin. for the Wall and the division resulted in families being split up and enflamed conflicts between the US and its allies on one side and the Soviets and their Warsaw Pact countries on the other. And even though attempts to keep people from fleeing through Walls and patrol guards were made, one can see that when there is a will, there is a way to circumvent the barriers and bring the sides together. Officials in Berlin on all levels have been working to keep the relicts of the former Berlin Wall from either falling apart or being removed in favor of modernization for reasons that this part of history should not be forgotten. Already, the mentality is “History is History, We worry about the future” is starting to set in, especially with the younger generations. Therefore, it is important that such artefacts are kept in place and restored with the goal of ensuring that this part of German history is not forgotten forever. The Bridges at Checkpoint Bravo is part of that history, which together with the former crossings at Bravo and Dreilinden, people should understand about. After all, in order to learn about what is going on in the present which is effecting the future, one needs to look into the past to determine what actions that were done then can still be used now in order to have a future for younger generations to enjoy.

The 104th mystery bridge takes us to Chesterton, Indiana. Spanning Coffee Creek, this is one of the most unusual truss bridges found on record to date because of its design. The bridge is a combination pony arch with riveted Howe truss features as a top chord. Pony arch because of the vertical beams supporting the arched truss spans, each beam is supported by an outrigger. The bridge had six panels total. Howe truss because of the X-frame design going from end to end in an arched fashion, all of it arched. Unique is the V-laced bracing running along the top part of the arched trusses, something that would have made it to the National Register of Historic Places, had it been left as is.

Records have pointed to the construction date of between 1893 and 1896, which would make this bridge one of the first ever to use riveted truss connections. Local records claim that it was built in 1893 and was located near the cemetary. Others claim that it was located somewhere else along the creek and that the location pointed in bridgehunter.com was only a guess. One claim shows that another bridge similar to this one was built in 1895 by the Indiana Bridge Company in Muncie.

This contradictory information leads us to the following questions:

When was this bridge built and where exactly?

Who was the bridge builder for this bridge? Was it the company in Muncie, or was it another company?

How was this bridge built? Was it built using trusses from a demolished building- one of my guesses?

How long did the bridge serve traffic before it was removed?

How many other bridges- if any- existed during this time?

The bridge was estimated to have been between 40 and 60 feet long; the trusses were up to seven feet high and the width was 16 feet wide. Anything else about the bridge depends on how much information a person can provide. If you have some to add, please feel free to comment.

Like this:

The 103rd mystery bridge takes us back to the state of Saxony, but this time to Zwickau. In 2016, I did a tour guide on the city’s bridges because of its history and unique design. This tour guide can be seen here. Regrettably, I missed a few bridges most recently, which may mean an update. This bridge was one of them.

I found this bridge by chance during a bike tour to explore the city. Zwickau is the city that I’m planning on moving to with my family next summer, so it was my duty to find a good place to re-establish the household, not to mention my business of the Chronicles. The bridge is located at Außer Schneeberger Strasse just south of Breithauptstrasse, just behind Glück Auf, the largest shopping area in Zwickau and the Zwickauer Land region (which includes Aue, Schneeberg, Kirchberg, Glauchau, Stollberg and Hohenstein-Ernstthal). The bridge currently spans a pipeline and runs parallel to an abandoned rail line between the central station and Pöhlau.

Next to the bridge is a steel plate girder span that appears to have been built in the 1970s. The bridge we are looking at is a Town Lattice truss bridge, which appears to have been built in the 1880s. There are three such spans, all of which are supported by stone piers. Each span is about 40 meters long and about 7 meters wide. The truss spans appears to have been painted recently in order to prevent rust and corrosion. The steel span is about 20 meters longer, twice as wide, and appears to have had two tracks at that time. The question we have here is whether the Town Lattice truss bridge was used first as a railroad crossing before it was converted to its current function as a pipeline crossing. This in addition to finding out when exactly it was built and who the builder way.

The map is enclosed below. Do you know more about the bridge? If so, it would be much appreciated if you can share some info. This bridge is easy to miss, yet by foot one should take some time to visit it. Let alone find out more about this missing gem…… 🙂

CHEMNITZ, GERMANY- Located in the central part of the German state of Saxony, Chemnitz, with a population of 245,000 inhabitants, is the third largest city in the state. It also has one of the largest number of historic bridges in the state, competing with the likes of Dresden, Leipzig and even some smaller communities, like Plauen, Glauchau, Rochlitz and Waldheim, just to name a few. Among the historic bridges, Chemnitz has five truss bridges, half as many as the city’s arch bridges. This includes the Chemnitz Viaduct, the railroad overpass near the Central Railway Station, and in the photo above, the bridge at Eckstrasse in the northern part of the city center.

Spanning the River Chemnitz, this 25 meter long span is a bedstead Pratt pony truss bridge with riveted connections. The vertical beams are V-laced and there are parallel diagonal beams. Although there are no records about its builder, the bridge was constructed in 1893 and survived two World Wars and the Cold War unscathed, which is in contrast to the buildings that had once stood before the bombings in February and March 1945. Sadly the bridge was also the subject of neglect as there were no repairs or rehabilitations done with the structure. It was closed to motorized vehicles in 2006 and was voted Germany’s worst bridge by the automobile association ADAC, a year later.

After years of neglect, the bridge’s days are officially number, according to the Chemnitz Free Press in connection with the city council’s decision. Beginning 13 August 2018, the bridge will be permanently closed to all traffic including cyclists and pedestrians. At the cost of 30,000 Euros, the construction crews will remove the truss structure in its entirety. No replacement is expected, which means cyclists and pedestrians will be forced to use the nearest crossings at Shoe Bridge and Müller Bridge. A map below shows you the three bridges:

The project is expected to take two weeks to complete. The reason behind the decision to remove the bridge does not have much to do with the cost for rehabilitating the bridge but more on the practicality of doing it, for many structural elements on the truss bridge is kaputt. Even during the visit in December 2016, one of the first impressions was the rust and corrosion on the truss superstructure itself. That went along with the rough decking with dips and cracks. These were issues that could have been fixed at the time prior to its closing in 2006, yet lack of funding may have played a role in delaying the rehabilitation process, eventually to a point of no return in the end. With over two dozen bridges over the River Chemnitz, with four bridges in the north of the city center, the Eckstrasse crossing was considered expendable because of the nearest crossings at Shoe Bridge and Müller Bridge, each were approx. 250 meters apart from this bridge.

The Eckstrasse Bridge will leave the cityscape with two opposite impressions. On the one hand, it will leave as one of the rarest historic bridges in Saxony that withstood history and the test of time. Yet it will be relieved of the humility of being the most neglected bridge that, if there had been expertise and financial resources, it could’ve been rehabbed and reused. Sometimes one has to follow the Indiana rule, which is if the bridge cannot carry vehicular traffic, it is rehabbed right away instead of being abandoned first. 80% of historic bridges in the Hoosier state were preserved that way. And while it is too late to save this rare jewel in Chemnitz, the state of Saxony should be put on notice should another historic bridge be put under the knife for structural deficiencies.

The MacArthur Bridge is one of many historic gems that makes the City of St. Louis the place to visit. Spanning the Mississippi River, this three-span Pennsylvania through truss opened to traffic in 1917, eight years after construction started on the crossing. It featured a double-decker span, with rail traffic serving the bottom deck and the upper deck having had highway traffic. The bridge used to carry Route 66 until the Chain of Rocks Bridge opened in 1928 and the highway was relocated there. Another highway, US 460 also crossed the bridge. In 1941, the bridge was named in honor of Gen. Douglas MacArthur, the war hero of World War II in the Pacific and an opposing candidate to Harry Truman in the 1948 US Presidential Elections. The upper deck was closed to all traffic in 1981 and has since been removed. The bottom deck is still receiving rail traffic on a regional and local basis although in the future, a new bridge may be needed.

To know more about the bridge, one has to look at what the bridge was like in the pas as well as in the future. I had an opportunity to find and watch this documentary on the history of the MacArthur Bridge. Produced by Rich Dinkela (Roaming Rich), it features old photos and films as well as drone footage of the structure to present viewers with a glimpse of a historic landmark and its history. More here and enjoy the docu! 🙂

Video:

There is a link that Shows you more of the MacArthur Bridge then and now. Note the Bridge is being alterated bit by bit to a Point where only the railroad Portion of the Bridge will remain in use. And then only for a short time as talks of replacing it with a newer span at ist own expense has been underway. More here.